Buford man killed by tree in the Smokies

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.- A Metro Atlanta man was killed when a tree fell on him in the Great Smokyy Mountains National Park during storms that hit the area Thursday, according to park rangers.

Smokies Chief Ranger Clayton Jordan says Ralph Frazier, 50, of Buford, Ga., died when a tree fell on him as he drove his motorcycle just east of the Townsend Wye in the park.

Jordan said a passenger on the motorcycle wasn't hurt.

A 41-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree that landed on a group of four trying to get out of a swimming hole. Rachael Burkhart, 41, from Corryton, Tenn. was killed in the incident, Jordan said.

The same tree trapped a 7-year-old girl underwater. She was revived by CPR. The girl's parents were hurt by the tree also.

Jordan said a number of other people were injured by falling trees and tree limbs in the park during Thursday's storms, which he said were the worst of its kind for many years. He says the only thing that compares to Thursday's storms is the Blizzard of '93.